


A Three-Year-Old's Party

by alwaysgocrazy



Category: Stitchers (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-16
Updated: 2016-06-16
Packaged: 2018-07-15 10:44:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7219282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alwaysgocrazy/pseuds/alwaysgocrazy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cameron has to go to his niece's birthday party and wants to take Kirsten. Kirsten uses the opportunity as an experiment.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Three-Year-Old's Party

“How do you feel about going to a three-year-old’s birthday party?”

“Mmm…no, thanks. I think I have to pass.”

“Oh, come on. It’ll be fun! Free drinks.”

“Tempting, but still no.”

“What if I told you there would be free drinks, free food, and a dinner date with me afterwards?”

“You drive a hard bargain, Goodkin.” Kirsten smiled, spinning around in her chair to face him and placed her tablet on the desk. “Let me ask you this: Why are you invited to a three-year-old’s birthday party?”

“It’s for my niece. My sister called and said that she really wants me to come.”

“Wait, your sister really wants you to come or your niece?”

“Well, probably both, but she said it was Addison asking.”

Kirsten nodded. “How many toddlers are going to be running around?” she asked.

“Can’t be more than ten, I would imagine. She just started daycare and it’s a small group. So, you’re game?” Cameron’s smile couldn’t be hidden any worse.

It only made Kirsten smile and give in. “Fine. And, let me guess, it’s this weekend?”

“Bingo!”

***

Kirsten had no clue as to what to wear. She found a flowy tank top in her wardrobe and threw on a pair of skinny jeans. She hoped to God it wouldn’t be deathly hot out like most days are in LA. She tossed her hair up into her typical ponytail and walked into the living room to wait for Cameron.

Camille walked in half asleep and still in her pajamas. “Why are you up and ready to go somewhere this early?” she asked with a yawn.

“Cameron’s dragging me to his niece’s birthday party. And it’s not that early; it’s almost eleven-thirty,” she countered.

“Cameron has a niece?” Camille asked as she collapsed down onto the chair and pulled a blanket around her shoulders.

“Apparently. He’s got a sister, too. The more you know.” Kirsten’s phone buzzed. A text from Cameron popped up saying he was there. She stood up and tugged on her top. “Whelp, gotta go. Have fun doing nothing today.”

Camille waved her off and snuggled into the chair to fall back asleep.

Kirsten slid into Cameron’s convertible with a smile. “You ready?” she asked.

He nodded eagerly. “You’re sure you’re cool with this?”

“No, but you offered dinner and alcohol, so it’s a fair trade off.” She buckled her seatbelt and looked at Cameron expectantly.

“Glad you feel that way.” He pulled out of her driveway and down the long road of her neighborhood before grabbing her hand. “How much do you dislike kids?” he asked.

Kirsten looked over at him. “What makes you think I dislike kids?”

He shrugged. “It’s a vibe you give off, I guess. Why, do you like kids?”

“No, they disgust me.” She made a face at just the thought of it. “I mean, I can handle them for a certain amount of time, but after a day, I’m done. Ed had a sister that had little kids while I was a teenager and they clung to me like no tomorrow. Ugh, I hated it.”

He nodded. There go those hopes and dreams. “Well, maybe after today you’ll see they aren’t that bad.”

“Mm-hmm, sure.” She rested her head against the headrest and closed her eyes. “I’m gonna guess you like kids and we’re having this talk because if one day we get married or come to a point where kids might be a consideration, this is perfect timing. Am I wrong?”

Cameron inhaled deeply. “Nope, not too far off…”

Kirsten nodded and looked over to him. “You know, I’m doing this today not just because of dinner afterwards.” They came to a stoplight and he turned his attention to her. “I’m doing this to see if I changed. I mean, I’ve changed so much in the past few weeks alone that I would not be surprised in the least if I actually don’t mind children.” She shrugged and squeezed his hand gently. “But, please, all I ask is that we don’t rush this, okay?”

He nodded. “Of course. I’m glad you’re being open.” He lifted up her hand and kissed the back of it. “We’ll cross the bridges when we get to them.”

***

The duo arrived to a large house decorated over the top with balloons, banners, tents, and a bounce house in the backyard. The smell of barbeque filled the air along with squeals of happiness from the young children running around.

Kirsten’s eyes were wide. “Damn, is your whole family loaded?”

Cameron chuckled nervously. “Well, yeah, kind of…”

She looked over at him. “Really? No wonder you went into a panic when all your credit cards got canceled,” she teased.

“Ha ha, very funny.” He parked on the side of the road and walked around to open Kirsten’s door. “You’re going to be okay, right?”

“Yes, Mom, I’ll be fine.” She rolled her eyes with a smile. She grabbed the present from the backseat. “Relax. I’m doing this for you and as an experiment. If at any point I become uncomfortable, I’ll let you know, alright?”

Cameron nodded and intertwined their fingers. “Alright, alright.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head. He began to walk them up to the house, but their path was interrupted by a little girl in a tutu and tiara running up to them.

“Uncle Cameron!” she squealed with her arms outstretched.

Cameron let go of Kirsten’s hand to bend down to the child’s level. “Addie!” he said just as happily. He scooped her up and flipped her upside down, only causing more giggles to erupt. “How’s my favorite niece? Huh? Huh?” He tickled her tummy.

The girl laughed and giggled, tensing at the tickles. “Stop!” she screamed. Cameron placed her down and ruffled her hair. “I want you to see my cake!” She held onto Cameron’s hand and dragged him towards the house.

He looked back at Kirsten with an apologetic face. She simply shrugged and walked towards the adults. One woman was walking out the front door and was just about mauled by Addison dragging Cameron around. “Be careful,” she warned.

The similarities between her and Cameron were undeniable. Their green eyes and curly hair matched almost perfectly. She decided to walk up and introduce herself. “Hi. I’m Kirsten. You must be Cameron’s sister, yes?”

Her face lit up. “Oh! Yes, I am! Hi!” She pulled Kirsten into a hug, more than startling Kirsten. “I’m Michelle. Our younger sister, Kayla, is inside already. I’m so glad you’re here! I’ve been dying to meet the girl that makes my brother’s world,” she grinned.

Kirsten’s cheeks began to redden. No wonder Cameron was willing to do almost anything to get her to come. “Yeah, he sort of dragged me here, tempting me with drinks and food.”

“Oh, we’ve got some sodas and beer in the cooler over there.” She began to walk to the giant cooler that was more like an icebox. “We’ve got Coke, Pepsi, Miller’s, Budweiser, Mike’s Lemonade—anything fit your fancy?”

“Do you have water?”

“Of course! I’ll be right back.”

 “Thanks.” Man, this lady is a talker, even if it was just about drinks. Is this what happens when you become a mom? You have to befriend everyone? That was one strike on motherhood.

Michelle came over with the cap popped off and a beer for herself. “Here you are. Can I get you anything else?”

Kirsten shook her head. “Nope, I think I’m good. I’m gonna go look for Cameron.”

“Alright. Here, let me take that present from you.” She did before allowing Kirsten to walk off.

Kirsten wandered into the massive house. Party balloons and banners were hung on every wall. The dining room table was covered in snacks and juice boxes. Another table was set up for gifts. It was amazing how large just the front of the house was.

She caught a glimpse of Cameron in the kitchen, smiling and talking to somebody. She walked down and saw what she assumed was another Goodkin. “Hey! Kirsten, this is my baby sister, Kayla,” he introduced, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.

Kayla was much younger than what Kirsten was expecting. If she had to guess, she would say Michelle was almost thirty, Cameron she knew was twenty-six, but Kayla looked to be twenty at the absolute oldest. She waved her hand and leaned into Cameron’s shoulder. “Nice to meet you.”

“Wow, Cam, bringing a date to a kid’s birthday party? I’m sure she’s having a blast,” teased Kayla.

“Oh, stop. At least we can drink and have fun that way,” Cameron shot back.

Kayla stuck her tongue out. “Whatever. Just know I won’t be your DD.” She grabbed her soda can and walked outside to where all the screaming children were playing.

“How old is she?” Kirsten asked.

“Nineteen. She was kind of the accidental child…” Cameron said. “My parents probably conceived her because of the stress of all my heart problems and Michelle’s minor OCD. She’s, honestly, probably the best and easiest child they had.”

Kirsten nodded and sipped on her water. “Are you two close?”

He shrugged. “As close as a brother and sister seven years apart can be. I will say I’m probably closer to her than Michelle. She’s got an interest in absolutely everything. Right now she’s thinking about majoring in psychology or neurology and minoring in one of the arts, most likely theatre. Kid’s got talent in all aspects.”

“Did you pressure her into neurology? Get her interested when she was, what, ten?” teased Kirsten.

“Shut up! No, that’s not what happened!” He hugged her shoulders tightly and walked them out back and to some of the lawn chairs. They sat down on the cushioned bench and watched a few other adults talk while children ran around. Cameron rested his head on Kirsten’s shoulder. “What do you think about kids?”

“They’re okay as long as you can give them back.”

“Have any of them approached you with little mud pie gifts?”

Kirsten rolled her eyes. “No. They’ve all been too busy playing in the bounce house. I think the parents are worse than the kids, though.”

“Why’s that?”

“You have to be friends with everyone. If you’re not, then you’re judged and shunned by everyone. Just look; this isn’t just a kid’s party, it’s also a parents’ get together and barbeque.”

“So, you’re down with kids but not parenting?”

“ _No_ , that’s not what I said. I said I just don’t want to be forced to befriend every single one of my child’s friends’ parents.”

Addison came running over to the two. She jumped up onto Cameron’s lap, causing him to grunt. “Careful,” he said.

Addison looked over at Kirsten briefly before “whispering” into Cameron’s ear. “Is that your girlfriend? She should be your girlfriend.”

Cameron chuckled and Kirsten blushed. “Yes, that’s my girlfriend. Her name is Kirsten. You say hi?”

“Hi…” she said much softer, shying away into Cameron’s shoulder.

Cameron adjusted Addison on his lap so they were both more comfortable. He rested her legs across his own and held her up with an arm wrapped around her back. “Tell her your name,” he said softly.

“I’m Addison. Sometimes people call me Addie, though, so you can call me both.

Kirsten smiled and nodded. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Addison.”

Addison leaned up to Cameron’s ear, whispering something only he could hear. By the reddening of his cheeks, it must’ve been something about them.

“I sure hope so one day,” Cameron responded, both of them now looking at Kirsten.

She tilted her head in confusion. Addison giggled. “It would be cool to have another aunt,” she said. “And then I can be the flower girl!”

Cameron folded his lips in with a smile, close his eyes, and let his head fall back. “Yup, you sure could,” he answered while shaking his head.

Kirsten’s cheeks turned bright red. That just made her everything happening in her life that much better. She smiled and stared at Cameron. She fingered through his hair gently, admiring his precious embarrassment.

Addison crawled over into Kirsten’s lap and hugged her. She whispered in her ear, “If Uncle Cameron asks you to marry him, please say yes.”

Kirsten hugged her back tightly. “Of course I will.” She was still staring at Cameron who was rubbing his face, but perked up when Kirsten responded to Addie. She only nodded at him with a smile.

“Addison, why don’t you go play some more?” he suggested. She was off of Kirsten’s lap in an instant and running off to the bounce house again. Cameron took a deep breath. “So, that’s another thing. Kids don’t know how to be quiet.”

“But they do know how to say things adults are clearly afraid to,” she quipped.

“Can we talk about this later?” he asked nervously.

“Of course; no need to rush things.”

He smiled and leaned in to kiss her cheek.

***

After a few hours of socializing, presents, and cake, Cameron and Kirsten decided to bail. They walked out hand in hand with Addison giving loving goodbyes to both of them.

Today surprised Kirsten in more ways than one. It was just going to be a test, an experiment. While it still was one, it blew past all of her expectations in all positive ways.

The couple slid into the car. Cameron took a deep breath. “So…million dollar question: How was it today?”

Kirsten looked over at him. “Today was…wonderful. It wasn’t what I expected at all, but it was almost better. It answered a lot of questions and…made quite a few decisions easier.”

“W-what do you mean?” he asked, his eyes widening.

No avoiding it now. “Well…a few weeks ago, I missed my period.” Wider eyes from Cameron. “I took a test. Well, I actually took more like three tests, but they were all positive. I went to the doctor and…” She reached into her purse and pulled out three black and white ultrasound photos.

Cameron was speechless, jaw dropped as low as it could go. He slowly reached for the photographs and examined them. The date was from almost a month ago. He looked at them closely, trying to figure out where the tiny human was. Kirsten assisted and pointed to the small dot on each of the photos. “Right there. It’s about the size of a blueberry right now, but it’s in there.”

He looked back up at her. “S-so…you’re keeping it?” he asked, a smile starting to grow.

“I was always going to keep it. I just…I didn’t know how you would be and if you would have wanted me to keep it or not.”

He almost scoffed. “Of course I want to keep it!” Tears were beginning to brim his eyes.

Kirsten smiled and could feel herself want to start crying as well. “R-really?” she asked.

Cameron reached over and hugged her tightly. “Yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes,” he assured, kissing the crook of her neck.

“I’m so glad…” She sighed heavily in serious relief. “And whenever you’re ready to propose, I’ll say yes, too.”

He laughed softly, his warm breath transferring to Kirsten’s shoulder. “One big thing at a time, Stretch.”

She kissed his head gently. “I love you, Cam.”

***

Nearly eight months later, a healthy baby girl by the name of Elizabeth Grace Goodkin was born with a mother and father now married by the courthouse and godparents named Linus and Camille.


End file.
